Introducing a contextual lens to assessment and intervention for young people who engage in harmful sexual behaviour: an Australian case study
Journal of Children's Services
ISSN: 1746-6660
Article publication date: 3 November 2021
Issue publication date: 30 August 2022
Abstract
Purpose
Intervention for young people engaging in harmful sexual behaviour has been largely based on individual-level conceptualisations and assessment. Prevention efforts reflect this individual-focus, relying primarily on offender management and justice responses. Risk of sexual abuse, however, is often situated outside the individual, within the broader social and physical systems in which young people are embedded. Lack of recognition for how contextual factors contribute to sexual abuse narrows the focus of prevention and intervention, overlooking the very contexts and circumstances in which this behaviour occurs. This paper aims to demonstrate the utility of contextual practice with young people who sexually harm, and implications for prevention.
Design/methodology/approach
An Australian case study is used to showcase the “why”, “what” and “how” of a contextual approach to assessment and treatment of young people who sexually harm.
Findings
Contextual approaches extend the focus of clinical practice beyond the individual to include the physical and social contexts that may contribute to risk. Adding a contextual lens broadens the approach to assessment, affording new opportunities to tailor the intervention to local contextual dynamics, and identifying new targets for primary and secondary prevention.
Originality/value
This is the first known attempt to extend understanding of contextual approaches to clinical assessment and intervention for young people who sexually harm, using a case study method. The case study showcases contextual assessment and intervention processes that challenge traditional thinking and practice in this field. Importantly, the case study also reveals new opportunities for primary and secondary prevention that emerge through this contextual clinical practice.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge Queensland and Australian Government funding for the Griffith Youth Forensic Service and the Griffith Neighbourhoods Project. This paper describes the author’s work on these two projects. The views expressed are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Queensland or Australian Governments.
Citation
Rayment-McHugh, S., Adams, D. and McKillop, N. (2022), "Introducing a contextual lens to assessment and intervention for young people who engage in harmful sexual behaviour: an Australian case study", Journal of Children's Services, Vol. 17 No. 3, pp. 192-204. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCS-06-2021-0024
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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